I’ll be joining 10,000 other Teach For America corps members and alumni this weekend at the 20th Anniversary Summit in Washington, DC. I could not be more excited. Several years ago, for the first time, I was beginning to question my career path. I had started my career as a TFA corps member and then entered education policy, but was beginning to wonder if I wanted to continue working in education. Was this a fight that could be won? At this pivotal moment, I attended Teach For America’s 15th Anniversary Summit ...

AF believes that outstanding teaching requires great curriculum -- and that great curriculum requires thoughtful, detailed long-term planning. One resource we use to support our teachers with unit planning is the Understanding by Design Professional Development Workbook. Check it out: http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/103056.aspx

Since AF is dedicated to coaching and growth, we're always looking for new ways to get even better. We think Lesley University's Literacy Coach Workshop might have some really great ideas. It will take place July 20-23 in Cambridge, MA: http://www.lesley.edu/crr/rr_coaching_4day.html

On March 13, Achievement First Leadership Fellows will come together to explore the idea of leading from the classroom. Leadership Fellows will share collaborative, inquiry-based professional development going on at their schools right now, such as Critical Friends Groups (http://www.nsrfharmony.org/faq.html) and Lesson Study (http://www.lessonresearch.net/). It should be a great day!

Professional Development -- Questioning Strategies: Using a Metacognitive Framework to Drive Questioning in Math Class February 23; 5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. New Haven, Connecticut Hosted by Nancy Livingston, Director of Math Achievement   Strong math programs teach students the skills they need to tackle any math problem. Teaching students to think through a metacognitive process is just as important as teaching basic math procedures and concepts. In this session, we will view videos of students engaging in this metacognit...

The world of Ed Reform can be confusing at times, especially when there's so much going on and so much misinformation out there. If you want to keep up to date, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. One place we go to keep track of breaking news and analysis of New York City public schools is www.gothamschools.org. In Gotham Schools' own words, "We seek to correct an unfortunate confluence of events: The movement to improve urban schools is reaching a peak of energy while the journalism industry is crumbling." The "Newsroom" covers...

At Achievement First, we help our school leaders focus on leading adaptively -- looking beyond technical "quick fixes" to the core values, behaviors and ideas at the heart of many challenges. We have borrowed many of our discussion protocols and reflection prompts from Ronald Heifetz and the Cambridge Leadership Associates. They'll be facilitating a two-day workshop on Adaptive Leadership in NYC on March 24 and 25. We hope to see you there! -- http://www.cambridge-leadership.com/index.php/services/workshops/#1

One of Achievement First's core values is "Team and Family." We see closing the achievement gap as a team sport; everyone shares in Achievement First's success while celebrating the unique strengths and differences of each person and school. In order to nurture this community spirit, we frequently use ice breakers and team-building exercises with both adults and students. We've found many great ideas here: http://wilderdom.com/games/

Beginning teachers notoriously struggle with discipline. At Achievement First, every teacher (novice or veteran) has a coach, so no teacher has to face this alone. We encourage our coaches to have new teachers read selections from the following books about classroom management: --Assertive Discipline: http://www.solution-tree.com/Public/Media.aspx?ShowDetail=true&ProductID=BKF246 --Teaching with Love and Logic: http://www.loveandlogic.com --How to Talk so Kids Can Learn at Home and in School: http://books.simonandschuste...

Achievement First supports school leaders in learning so that school leaders can support teachers in learning, all with the ultimate goal of dramatically increasing student learning. We encourage principals to develop the "four pillars" of teacher learning: teaming, providing leadership roles, engaging in collegial inquiry and mentoring. Eleanor Drago-Severson articulated this leadership model in her book, Helping Teachers Learn: Principal Leadership for Adult Growth and Development, published by Corwin Press: http://www.co...